Einstein once again appeals to county for SCV charter

For the third time, the Einstein Academy for Letters, Arts and Sciences has appealed to the county to try and overturn a decision by the Saugus Union School District to deny its petition for an elementary charter school.An added twist this time around is the fact that Einstein has already won its long-sought approval for an elementary school in the Santa Clarita Valley. Board members for the Acton-Agua Dulce Union School District voted 3-2 on May 16 to approve a school for students from kindergarten to 6th grade.Though it is chartered through the Acton-Agua Dulce district, the school is set to be located within the boundaries of the Saugus district, according to Superintendent Joan Lucid.“They notified us right prior to the Acton meeting that they would locate in our district,” Lucid said.Einstein has twice gone to the county Board of Education to appeal charter denials from the Saugus district. In both cases, Einstein officials withdrew the appeal before the board could vote on it.Saugus has denied four Einstein charter petitions, most recently in April.The last time Einstein’s appeal went before the board, staff members of the Los Angeles County Office of Education recommended the board deny the appeal.Einstein officials subsequently withdrew the appeal, citing a desire to work with the county to iron out any issues in the charter.Jeffrey Shapiro, the lead petitioner of the charter and executive director of the Einstein Academy foundation has previously told The Signal that if denied by the Saugus district again, Einstein would appeal to the county once more.Shapiro did not respond to a phone call or an email requesting comment Saturday.Einstein’s appeal to the Los Angeles County Board of Education is scheduled for Tuesday in the Los Angeles County Office of Education, 9300 Imperial Highway in Downey.Lmoney@signalscv.com661-287-5525On Twitter @LukemMoney